IN Brief:
- McLaren will deliver British Land’s £99m West One redevelopment above Bond Street Underground Station.
- The project combines new-build and retrofit work, retaining around 60% of the existing concrete structure.
- The completed scheme will provide 93,517 sq ft of commercial space over seven storeys.
McLaren Construction has been appointed by British Land to deliver the £99m redevelopment of 75 Davies Street and West One Shopping Centre above Bond Street Underground Station in London.
The design-and-build contract combines new-build and retrofit work to create 93,517 sq ft of premium commercial space over seven storeys. The scheme will add three office floors, expand the office reception, create cycle storage and shower facilities, introduce courtyard and terrace areas, and provide a new core with plant rooms on level eight.
West One dates from the late 1970s and currently includes retail space from basement to first floor, with offices above. The redevelopment, designed by Allford Hall Monaghan Morris, will reconfigure the building with retail on the basement and ground floors and offices from levels one to seven.
The commercial uplift is substantial, with office space increasing by around 88%, from 49,801 sq ft to 93,517 sq ft net internal area. British Land is targeting NABERS 5*, BREEAM Excellent, EPC A, and WELL Enabled ratings, placing energy performance, occupier wellbeing, and sustainability credentials within the core specification.
Working above a live Underground station serving the Central and Jubilee lines, with interchange to the Elizabeth line, gives the project a high level of construction complexity. McLaren will need to coordinate with Transport for London, manage vibration monitoring, plan works around off-peak periods, and maintain safe access for retail tenants and station users throughout the programme.
Retailers will continue trading during the works, while pedestrian routes, servicing, and construction traffic will need close control around one of the busiest areas of the West End. The site also sits above a dense tunnel network, restricting structural weight and limiting the scope for additional foundations.
Retaining around 60% of the existing concrete structure is central to the project’s embodied-carbon approach. A lightweight steel structure will be used from the second floor upwards to add new levels while working within the constraints of the existing frame and underlying infrastructure. Additional foundations will be limited to those required for the new concrete core.
The external design includes fluted glazed terracotta to the projecting façade bays from the second to fifth floors, with dark terrazzo and bronze-finished aluminium at lower levels. The second-floor courtyard will be upgraded with breakout spaces, while planting around the courtyard plantroom will contribute to almost 11,872 sq ft of green roofs and walls.
Central London’s commercial market is increasingly shaped by schemes that blend retention, repositioning, and performance upgrades rather than full demolition and replacement. Developers are under pressure to produce office space that meets modern occupier requirements while limiting embodied carbon and planning risk. For contractors, that shifts complexity into structural surveys, temporary works, building services integration, live-environment logistics, and the careful sequencing of old and new fabric.
McLaren’s recent workload has included several complex delivery environments, including its role managing accommodation, offices, education facilities, and support buildings for the Sizewell C campus works. West One is a different type of project, but it draws on similar strengths in sequencing, interface control, stakeholder coordination, and operational continuity.
The demand for efficient, high-quality, well-located office space remains strongest in prime areas, even as weaker stock struggles to attract occupiers. Retrofit projects that can improve amenity, certification, and floorplate quality while retaining a large share of the existing structure are therefore becoming a more important part of the capital’s construction pipeline.
West One is due to complete in the first quarter of 2029. For McLaren, the project will test delivery in a constrained city-centre environment where retrofit, rail infrastructure, live retail, pedestrian management, and premium office specification all have to be managed on the same footprint.